Improvement in stopping bottles



No. 45,112. PATENTED NOV. 15, 1864.

A. ALBERTSON'. STOPPING BOTTLES.

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ALBERT ALBERTSON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSlG-NORTO J. N. MOTNTIRE OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN STOPPING BOTTLES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No 45, l 12, dated November 15, 1854.

To all whom it may concern: I Beit known that I, ALBERTALnnRTsoN, of New 'York, of the county of New York, in the State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Bottle-Stoppers; and I- do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this application.

My invention relates to that'kind of bottle stopper which closes the mouth of the bottle from within the bottle.

Previous to my present invention, several bottle-stoppers of this class have been sug gestcd andinadc the subjects of Letters Patent to myself and. othersas, for instance, one in which a floating ball is employed within the bottle, which is intel'lded-to-lloat up into ther neck of thebottle (as the latter is .iilled'with any liqnidlan-d there coming in contact with the internal surface .ol'the bottle-neck form a tight joint or close the bottle; or, as for an instance, the one patented to me which a.-

valve is pressed upward against'the internal surface of the bottle-neck bya spiral spring having its upper end securcd t-o the rod-pf said valve and its lower end supported on an ann n-.

l'ar shoulder in the neck of the bottle; butall of the modes heretofore suggested are-subject to objections, which it is the object of my prescut invention to ,,overco1ne. In the floating (confined) stopper the closing is not effectually done, and in ;,t l re ,devicc just mentioned, involving the spiral spring and valve, the necessary form of bottle renders the neck liable to be broken elf-very easily and the spring subj cct to derangement and catches and retains dirt.

My present invention consists in a stopper composed of a valve or cork, in combination with aspring-rod, the whole so constructed that it can be ipserted'intothe bottle, and so that the spring will' act tohold the cork or valve up against the interior of the bottle-neck, all as hereinafter to be fully explained.

and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the construction and operation of one of my new bottle-stoppers, referring by letters to the ac ompanying drawings, maklng part of this application, and in which- Figure 1 is a vertical or longitudinal section of a (sodawater) bottle having one of my improved stoppers applied to it. Fig. 2 is a similar view of another bottle, and showing a modification of my. said invention involving ajdilfercnt form of spring-rod; and Fig. 3 represents (in connection with the mouth of .a bottle) an instrument whichmay be employed advantageously as an opener of my improved bottle-stoppers. V

In the several figuresflk represents a bottle, of any desirable design or form, and having a perfectly plain mouth, B'that is, without any annular internal shoulders or ledges. The

stopper is composed of a rubber disk, 0, (or

washer of other. suitably pliable and elastic materiah) confined on a rod, 0, between the head (2 of said rod and-a metallic washer or collar, f, soldered or otherwise fastened to said rod near its headed end. Said rod 0 extends for a shortdistance from its head 12 about straight,,and for the balance of the wa' is formed into a helical curve and properly made rior of the bottom of the bottle, as seen at Fig. 1; or said red C may be made straight for some distance beyond its head (I and then formed into a spiral spring, as seen at Fig. 2, which rests upon the bottom of the bottle.

The form of spring-rod seen at Fig. 1 is best adapted to the ordinary form or shape of b ottles, while that seen at Fig. 2 should have the bottle made (as shown in said figure) with the internal surface of its bottom dished out or depressed at the center, so as-to induce the lower end. of the spiral spring. 0 to center itself in the bottle, when inserted and pressed down to confine the stopper in the bottle, as will be presently explained.

to constitute a spring bearing upon thc intc The diameter of the head (1, 'it will be observed, is much less than the internal diameter of the neck nor the bottle, while the diameter of the washer or collar f, it will be To enable those skilled in the art to make seen, is nearly or about equal to the diameter of the interior of I neck '13. The object and effect of this mode of construction are to ad 'mit of the entire stopper or alve being readily forced down into the bottle through the neck B, and to prevent it being forced outward through said neck again after it has been inserted. 1

After the stopping device, composed of the rubber" disk e, spring-rod G, with its head (1 and collar f,has been completed or constructed as-shown, the spring-rod (with its spring 0, when made as shown at Fig. 2) is put down through the neck 13 into the body of the bottle until thedisk e rests on the edge or mouth of the bottle. The head-d is now pressed on downward until the disk 0 is doubled up around the head (has illustrated by the red lines atliig. 2, and is forced down below the bulge of the neck, where itis free. to 'distend itselfagaininto' its normal condition. The head (1 is then released from pressure,'when the said disk e will be forced upward (or outward) again by the distention of the spring of rod 0, (resting on the bottom ofthe'bottle, and which was compressed to get the diske down through the neck 13,) and. come in contact with e the internal surface-of the neck of the bottle and effectually close it up, as seen. After the disk has once been forced down through theneck B it cannot, he forced by any pressure from within the-bottle out again, since the disk f is so large in diameter as not to admit of its passing through the neck with the disk c doubled overits edge, (thuscoming between said edge and the surface of the neck B.) Thus it will be seen that the valve portion of the stopping device, though readily inserted into thebottle, cannot be readily forced out; but

it will be understood that this peculiarity of valve does not form any part of my present invention which may be used with any other form of valve which can be readily forced down through the neck and cannot be easily foreed'out again. o

A bottle supplied with my new stopper may be filled in the same manner that bottles are filled provided with a device such as shown in Letters Patent granted to me on the 26th day of August, 1862, or in any other desirable manner. To open the bottle the head d is depressed (by means of an opener, as seen in Fig. 3, or in any other manner) and the contents poured out.

If deemed expedient, bottles may be formed with an annular rib, c, and an opener made with springcatches,-which will catch over the said rib.

Having fully explained my new bottle-stonper, and not wishing to limit myself to at precise construction of valve,- (so long as it is made capable of easy insertion and so as to be'pressed up from within without passing through the neck,) or to any precise form of spring-rod, what I claim, andv desire to secure by Letters'latent, is-

A stopper or closing device for bottles, composed of; a valve or cork, in combination with a spring r-0d or its equivalent, the whole constructed to operate substantially as hereinbefore described.

my hand and seal this 20th day of October,-

ALBERT ALBERTSON. [11.5.1 In presence of J. N, MCINTIRE, ANDREW J. TODD. 

